We have had this wonderful weather for the past week or so. Just enough time for Robby and Dad to get a lot done to the back yard of the old house. But Sunday morning, we woke up to snow again! And here I was thinking it was spring!

I am not sure just how this happened, but I could swear that just yesterday, this guy was just a cute cuddly newborn and now he is a big kid, standing in his walker, happy as a clam with his cracker! Where did my baby go?

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Russ & I went to the hospital and watched a lovely movie with CL last night. (Yes, for those of you who we haven't talked to in the last 24 hours, CL got yanked back into the hospital. After finishing her IVs she managed to get influenza, which has a nasty respiratory component. Due to the fact that she's supposed to leave for school in about 18 days they decided we can't wait and see, and so it's back on IV's again. Hopefully they'll let her out tomorrow, but the doctor is on right now who always wants her to stay at least a week. So we'll see....)

So back to the movie. Very lovely. Very cool music. Very sweet. And absolutely *nothing* to complain about, except that Robin Williams as a kind of homeless Fagan really creeped me out. Oops--and I will also complain that I could have used about 15 more seconds of ending...IMO Enchanted provided that extra few seconds of ending that make me feel satisfied. This didn't quite get there--I'd put this ending with Sleepless in Seattle. But watch it anyway!

I'm not sure how to include several pictures together, so I'll do this in several installments. This is episode 2 - Living Room upstairs. It's hard to get perspective in the small space, but there's seating for everyone in this cozy arrangement.

Well folks, here it is - Grampa and Nanna's additions to the little Genola House. We've had fun doing what we've done, although it doesn't begin to compare with what Andra and Bob have already accomplished. We've done the fun, easy parts. What do you think? We refurbished the wood stove (looks like new!) and put up some tile on the wall behind it. Cool, huh?

Thursday, March 27, 2008

i have a job now.Em and I are still in Rexburg. It is still snowing here. Occasionally.Last i posted, I was looking for work as a Service Advisor. The options were a job in Pocatello (A Large dealership called Lithia) or Rexburg (A service desk at a used car lot), at least i think i posted those conundrums. Well, anyway, After interviewing with both, i decided that i'd keep in contact with Lithia and stay in rexburg for work acquiring experience in preparation for our next move to somewhere more temperate (sorry Margaret).So, I work for Thrifty Car Sales now.It's awesome, because instead of just comming into a fully functioning dealership at full speed and feeling dumb and dead to start with, i am in a slightly struggling smaller independant shop, with ties to the largest dealership in rexburg. So, I get to get faster as our business comes up. I am really happy with the decision to stay local... also, My commute to Pocatello would have been 1 hour 15 minutes each way. now my commute is 1.15 miles. which would you prefer?

What else? My Emily is awesome. Our apartment is nice and warm, and our pathway is almost without snow... or was before this morning when we got a snow that looked suspiciously like Dippin' Dots ice cream...Theres the update, if anyone was asking "what ever happened to sam in his search for a job". oh, yeah, my brain damage is getting better too. turns out working with numbers all day long is the cure for playing video games and trying to get blown up for a year. Cool, huh?

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

I have really enjoyed watching these little boys at the new house. It seems like every day is a new adventure.

Joseph decided to hook up his dump truck to the dump trailor with an old chain he found in the yard. He could not figure out why it would not pull....Then they decided that the master bathroom shower was a really great place to play.Recognize the ball, Cindy?The back yard may be just dirt, but hey, they are boys, and there are two levels to climb and slide. Their clothes may not last very long at this rate.Joseph decided the cubbies are great places to rest and just big enough to get some alone spaceAnd finally - who needs a bedroom when you can all fit in a laundry room cabinet!

Actual pictures of the transformation on our "little house" are cordoned off - all access is denied until Dad and Ramona are ready to show it off. They are working day and night doing all the dirty work that I did not get to (can you say clean ovens?) and some work that just plain needed doing! I can't wait until you guys can see the changes - it is really hard for me not to say and to leave it a surprise because it is looking so great!

Monday, March 24, 2008

I thought I would jump on the bandwagon and add our Easter picture, too. Anyone else have one they'd like to share? Post 'em if you've got 'em! Well, the weather is beautiful here. It makes me want to sit in the yard all day rather than do house/homework.

Well I thought I would try my first post!I wanted a picture of my kids yesterday and I wanted them to look good. Well, we bought Will some new Crocs on Friday and he loves them! I was afraid he would want to wear them on Sunday so I hid them Saturday night. As you can see from the picture I was not successful!

Lincoln sais he is playing the game of Chest with his best friend Bingo. For some reason, all my little kids have thought this game is called Chest. Does that say something about how they were raised????Bingo is Lincoln's constant companion. He goes with him to school often in the backpack and sometimes to church, but it not allowed to go to primary. There are pictures of bingo on all of Lincolns school work, and his stories are about bingo too. I think Bingo is winning.

So for this day anyway, this is what it means to be a teenager in Western New York. Or the siberian tundra, as we are calling it today because it is 25 flippin degrees, and it is march 23, or whatever!!!! On other days, being a teen in WNY might mean a lot of different things, but this was a good one. This day was Michelle's baptism day. Michelle is Brooklynn's best friend. And Levi got to baptise her. That was about a month ago. Just yesterday Michelle's parents were baptised. I am glad she has a mom, because I really like her mom, Kim. How fun for me, I get to have a new friend too.

I haven't posted lately and I've been so happy to see that everyone else has been posting! First I didn't post because Mahon came to visit and we were busy with him here and went to the beach for 2 days. Then I didn't post because for some reason all of the pictures ended up on CL's computer from our hiking trip and beach trip. I finally got those a couple of days ago and down below is a really fun video of the girls from our trip. Now mind you this was early March and it was 60 degrees tops when we were there--not too warm!

Then I couldn't post because Russ had to reformat my computer and reinstall everything because I was having some problems. Then I couldn't post because Russ had to reformat CL's computer too, but while doing so the mother board died. So CL was without a computer for the better part of a week and I, being the kind mother that I am, let her use my computer a lot while hers was dead. Thank goodness for that extended warrenty.

Lastly, I've been sewing up a storm. Here is a picture of the little kids--the girls in dresses I made last week. Right now I'm working on the first bridesmaid dress, and I have 2 other bridesmaid dresses, 2 flower girl dresses, 2 baptism dresses, and something else that I can't remember, to get done before the middle of July. That's a lot of sewing! Thank goodness for Ramona--she's making 3 others so that I don't have to worry about them!

And somewhere in there has been some homeschool and some cooking and the never ending laundry. So there you have it. My really exciting life.

Hey--new movie recommendation for everyone. CL and I watched "The Queen" the other day while I was sewing. It's about the Queen the week that Tony Blair is put in as prime minister and Diana dies, and it was fascinating. Kind of slow starting, and hard to try to figure out who's who, but it was really so interesting to watch. I could see why it got an Oscar for leading actress--she was just incredible.

Well I'm off to exercise and then back on the treadmill that is my life!

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

So, on Saturday we started getting our new windows installed. After living in this house for several winters we have gotten very good at putting plastic on the windows, followed by multiple curtains. However, even then sometimes you can still see curtains moving in a good wind storm. So, instead of going on some tropical vacation we invested our tax return in new windows for the main floor of our house, 17 windows in all. Next week they should finish with them all, and I am so excited, because it is almost warm enough to take down the various random curtains and actually be able to see the beauty of what is happening outside of my house! PS. the pictures are 1) one room without windows 2)before picture in the kitchen - plastic and all 3)new window in kitchen. Look how clear the glass and screen are! No more wavy glass here!

So, I think I can say that Joshua is officially done with his pacifier. Hunter and Lilly never took pacifiers, nor did they take bottle exclusively, ever. So Joshy has been our experiment child. Luckily the "cold turkey" method was very successful with the pacifier and Joshua has slept through the night for 2 nights now!!!

Sunday, March 16, 2008

A friend recommended this movie some time ago, and I happened to see it on the cheap table at blockbuster this week. I bought it and Russ brought the projector home from work and we had a family movie night on Friday. All I can say is that I can't recommend this movie highly enough. We were all in tears at the end, even Russ!

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Hey guys were coming to Utah. MONDAY, Tuesday, Wednesday of next week. We are gonna make the Utah trip seperate from the rest of road trip 08' so that we can see everyone there without involving the cat. We love you all and hope to see the UTA'ns while were there. Love much. Jeremy and Maria.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

So, Jeremy knows that i like flash games. I find them to be simplicity and awesome wastes of my time. i found one that i think the twins would like, and more than just them. Jeremy has become an addict too. here's an attempt to a link and pic.